Naoko Ishii

Naoko Ishii has dedicated her career to safeguarding the global commons – our stable and resilient earth system, that serves as the bedrock of human prosperity and yet is under threat by the current economic system. In her efforts to bring about a transformation in this system, she became an inaugurating director for the Center of Global Commons at the University of Tokyo in 2020 with aim at building a multi-stakeholder coalition in Japan and forge partnerships with international allies for systemic change. Before U-Tokyo, she serves as CEO and Chairperson for the Global Environment Facility (GEF) from 2012 to 2020. She brings her expertise to global discourse by joining the Independent High-Level Expert Group on Climate Finance, Global Commission on the Economics of Water (GCEW), and Planetary Guardians, among others. Her earlier roles include Deputy Vice Minister of Finance in Japan, senior positions at the World Bank and IMF.